What are Artifacts in Claude?
Artifacts in Claude are specialized windows designed to display important, standalone content generated by user requests. This goes beyond simple text responses, offering interactive and editable outputs that include code snippets, documents, websites, images, and more. Users can also edit the Artifacts created by Claude, allowing real-time modifications and iterations of AI-generated content. Additionally, they can easily save and export these Artifacts for use outside of Claude. Through Artifacts, Claude transforms from a mere conversational assistant into a powerful collaborative tool, helping users efficiently manage and utilize AI-generated content.
I ran a test myself:
Claude creates an Artifact when the generated content has the following characteristics:
The content is significant and self-contained, usually exceeding 15 lines. Content that users may wish to edit, iterate on, or reuse outside of the conversation. Represents a complex content fragment that can exist independently without additional conversational context. Content that users may want to reference or use later.
Common examples:
Documents (Markdown or plain text) Code snippets Websites (single-page HTML) Scalable vector graphics (SVG) images Charts and flowcharts Interactive React components
The Artifact feature is available to all Claude users. This feature is currently in preview and requires manual activation.
Features:
: Users can instantly view and interact with generated content, from website designs to data visualizations. : Developers can write, edit, and execute code directly within the Artifact window. : Teams can collaborate on the same Artifact, promoting real-time collaboration. : Artifacts support various content types, including code, documents, images, and interactive components. : Users can track changes and revert to previous versions of their work.
Re-editing
Modify code by requesting Claude to add functions, fix errors, optimize performance, etc. Request Claude to elaborate on certain parts of a Markdown document or change the formatting. Request design adjustments for SVG images or HTML pages, such as changing colors, fonts, layouts, etc. Let Claude modify the data or parameters of charts or React components.
The difference between Artifacts and regular chat replies in Claude
Artifacts in Claude represent a significant advancement compared to regular chat replies, providing a more interactive and versatile way to handle AI-generated content. Below is a detailed comparison between Artifacts and regular chat replies:
| Feature | Regular reply | Artifacts |
|---|---|---|
| Display method | Inline text | Dedicated window |
| Content type | Primarily text | Multiple formats |
| Interactivity | Static | Fully editable |
| Content size | Usually shorter | Larger and more complex content |
| Persistence | Limited to chat history | Can be saved with version control |
| Visualization | Limited | Rich options |
| Collaboration | Personal use | Team-friendly |
| Version control | None | Built-in version control |
| Export options | Copy-paste | Multiple export methods |
| Context dependency | Typically higher | Self-contained |
Integration with Claude Vision capabilities:
You can have Claude analyze an image you upload and then generate an Artifact to visualize or explain its insights (e.g., an annotated version of the image, a chart of key concepts, etc.). Claude can generate SVG images or HTML designs based on the content of uploaded images (e.g., creating a website prototype based on a brand's visual style). For data visualization, you can provide Claude with a dataset or chart image, allowing it to generate an interactive version as a React component Artifact.